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Stargate: A New Chapter

Stargate: A New Chapter

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By now we have all read about Roland Emmerich’s plans to reboot the Stargate franchise; creating a new trilogy of films. But how are the fans reacting? From the few I spoke to they seem to have a pessimistic curiosity. Stargate the original movie was a wonderful piece of science fiction and an amazing summer blockbuster. But I grew up with Stargate SG1. I became an RDA (Richard Dean Arderson) fan. I collected all the DVD’s and magazines. I dedicated a decade to that show plus more with the spinoffs Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe. They created a much bigger world than the movie ever did. And it leaves fans wondering; what can they possibly do that the show hasn’t already done? Well, we’re not going to get any answers soon. Emmerich still has Independence Day 2 & 3 to complete and that will keep him busy until, oh say, 2018. The likelihood of a new Stargate movie coming any time is slim pickings. Which makes this announcement all the more infuriating. Anyway, lets ignore that for a moment and look back on what has already come before. We’ll recap and try to to imagine what new possibilities could emerge from untapped sources to warrant a whole new trilogy of films.

I won’t be mentioning the novels, video games, or the cartoon Infinity. We’ll just stick with the film and television shows, otherwise we’ll be here forever. Actually, did anyone watch Stargate Infinity? No? Good. It was just awful. You saved yourself a lot of pain by avoiding it. 

The Original Movie

It was in 1994 that Stargate first graced us with its presence.  It starred James Spader and Kurt Russell as Dr. Daniel Jackson and Colonel Jack O’Neil (one L) who go on a mission through a device known as the Stargate – found buried in the sands of Egypt – to another world – that also happens to look like Egypt. They piss off the local God, Ra (as you do) by trying to blow him up with a nuclear device. But with the help of the towns folk, who are sick of working for THE MAN, they manage to defeat Ra and end his endless rein of tyranny.

>What it gave us:

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The film opened up many doors. It introduced us to the Stargate device, a parasitic alien claiming to be an Egyptian God, a whole other world of humans kidnapped thousands of years ago by the same parasitic alien, a military conspiracy that would have Fox Mulder screaming for answers, and polar opposite characters who learn to eventually respect one another. Imagine if they were allowed to continue with the sequels, who’d know what stories they could have developed. The possibilities were endless. But it’s difficult now to try and speculate what could have been when the television show presented so much already. It was unfortunate for Emmerich that MGM wanted to go different route. But are we sad he wasn’t given the chance? After all, we were given…

>Stargate: SG1

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SG1 first aired in 1997 and stayed on television for a whole 10 Seasons. That’s an entire decade with over 200 episodes. 

SG1 centers around the voyages of a US Air-Force team exploring new worlds, seeking out new life and civilizations. Boldly going where no Air-Force team has gone before. But exposing themselves as advanced humans to the universe they inexplicably cause a ripple in the force. Now they must seek out allies and new technology to defeat the big evils of the galaxies before it annihilates them.

What it gave us: SG1 was a small screen success. It took what it needed from Emmerich’s Stargate and expanded its mythology, universe, and ideas. Did you know the parasitic alien in the movie was a Goa’uld? No? Really? Oh, that’s right, they never mentioned what species the alien was in the film. Well, did you know the material that made up the Stargate was called Naqudah? You didn’t? You really should watch the TV show.

Aside from naming things that really needed names, SG1 was able to go wherever it wanted; do whatever it pleased. They extended the Goa’uld universe and added in new Gods. They wrote in an address book so they could visit more worlds – mainly forest worlds because they shot in Vancouver. They created Michael Shanks to look like James Spader. They even rewrote the Stargate origin – believed once to have been created by the Goa’uld when in fact was created by an ancient alien race known as The Ancients. I think they ran out of ideas for naming things. The series continued to evolve and by the end of the final season most of Goa’uld were defeated and their slaves freed; Earth was pretty bad-ass in the eyes of many races, gaining new advanced technology and placing themselves head of the universe food chain ; and they even found the long lost city of Atlantis… 

Stargate: Atlantis

SGA (Stargate Atlantis) blasted onto our screens in 2004 and ran along side SG1 from it’s 7th Season on. It focuses on a group of soldiers and scientists who discover a new eight Chevron address (in Stargate mythology you only need 6 Chevrons and a point of origin to dial an address) that could send them across the universe to the City of Atlantis. It is a one way mission as there is not enough power to dial home and they are left to fend for themselves in an unknown galaxy. They accidentally awaken a fierce hive of life sucking aliens known as the Wraith who were responsible for the destruction of the most powerful race in the universe, the Ancients. They now must seek out a new power source in the hopes of getting home before the Wraith destroy them too.

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What it gave us:

Remember when I mentioned the writers rewrote who built the Stargate? And remember when I said they could do anything they pleased? So, the Ancients weren’t just the builders of the Stargate, we are also their descendants. They birthed humanity in the Milky Way and launched themselves into the stars millions of years ago. On their new home planet, in another universe, they created two evil races – the Replicators and the Wraith  that causes havoc for both SGA and SG1 in the future. The show really plays around with everything you were made to believe and flips them around to keep the stories fresh and exciting. By the end of its run the members of SGA find themselves the cool kids of another galaxy and even manage to fly Atlantis back to Earth and land it in San Francisco next to Starfleet Academy. Or, not. Whatever. Speaking of whatever… 

Stargate Universe

The Stargate franchise started to get a little stale and the writers wanted to ground the show about a magical ring that transports people places in human drama. They wanted real people with real emotional problems to be the forefront of a show called Stargate. Thus SGU was born in the fall of 2009. It starts exactly like SGA, only this time a ninth Chevron address is found and civilians get caught up in the mix with the soldiers and scientists. The group find themselves on a ship called Destiny, created by the Ancients, that is on a mission to find the origin of the big bang, or something. They have no way of turning the ship around and everyone goes Lord of the Flies on each other.

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What it gave us:

Many felt SGU was a step in the wrong direction. It was dark, moody, grey, and nothing like the Stargate we all knew and loved. I cannot disagree with anything I just said and that’s fine. SGU intentionally broke away from it’s campy counterparts and tried to do something inventive. It did borrow elements from other gritty sci-fi shows, but who hasn’t? Battlestar Galactica borrowed from Firefly, and Firefly borrowed from Cowboy Bebop. But SGU did something SG1 and SGA did not; it searched for meaning. And not just the meaning of the universe, but the meaning for the crew of Destiny and their purpose in life. It was philosophical and had some top-notch acting. And it had Robert Carlyle! 

The New Trilogy 

What can we hope to see in the Stargate reboot? Will we see another incarnation of Colonel O’Neilll (three L’s this time) or Daniel Jackson? What about the mythology behind it all? Will it be ancient Egypt all over again or something new? And what about the Stargate itself? Will it still be under the American’s control? Will there be a Stargate Command? How can Emmerich possibly expand his idea for the Stargate universe when there has already been 15 years worth of television that has done exactly that? Where can they go?

There are so many questions. There are numerous outcomes. If done right, Stargate could fall into JJ Abrams’s Star Trek category of reboots. If done poorly, we could easily see another Amazing Spiderman – fresh cast with no spark. What would be interesting to see is a whole new perspective. Get away from the military side of things. Perhaps show the film from the point of view of the Stargate creators and them dealing with the consequences of their device falling out of their hands. I’m not sure where you could go after that but it would be a change of scenery. I am willing to give Emmerich a chance. I’m all too happy to see any kind of Stargate back on the screen, big or small, as long as it’s not Stargate Infinity. 

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